Boise-based grocery retailer Albertsons Companies -- the privately-held owner of Safeway, Vons, and other grocery brands -- is plunging deeper into the pharmacy business with a deal to buy Rite Aid, the nation's third-largest drugstore chain.
Albertsons is offering either a share of its stock and $1.83 in cash, or slightly more than a share for every ten shares of Rite Aid. A deal value was not disclosed in a statement released Tuesday by the companies.
Shares of Rite Aid jumped in pre-market trading.
Albertsons shareholders will own more than 70 percent of the combined company, which is expected to trade on the New York Stock Exchange.
Rite Aid Corp. said earlier this year that it operates some 4,400 stores. Last September, it agreed to sell nearly 2,000 to larger rival Walgreens for $4.38 billion.
(By The Associated Press)
